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School of Visual Art and Design

  • Photograph of Stormwater Studios

Stormwater Collaborative Residency

Congratulations to our selected residents:
Anthony Lewis (artist)
Ken Tips (artist)
Madeline Walshe (artist)
Alexa Sewell (art historian)

Application Deadline: September 11, 2022, 11:59 p.m. EST
Residency Period: September 19 - November 1, 2022 
Exhibition Period: February 13 – 24, 2023

The Stormwater Collaborative Residency will provide an opportunity for up to 3 undergraduate student artists working in any medium and 1 undergraduate student art historian to share a studio space for 6 weeks to develop their practice in cooperation with each other. SVAD undergraduate students may apply individually or as a team.  

Resident artists are asked to produce work related to the College of Arts and Science’s Spring 2023 theme semester, which will be devoted to exploring the creative power of play. The resident art historian will draft a curatorial essay and assist in the preparation of wall text and installation of the exhibition. 

This program emphasizes a strong collaborative element by placing student artists and scholars together and supporting them in the development of a shared creative vision. This is a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to explore and learn from one another in a professional studio, in proximity to professional artists, and with the expressed purpose of exploring their collective vision in response to the theme semester.  

Eligibility

All currently enrolled undergraduate SVAD students are eligible to apply.  

All media taught in SVAD are considered appropriate for the Stormwater Collaborative Residency Program: drawing, painting, ceramics, jewelry, photography, printmaking, bookmaking, graphic design and illustration, filmmaking, digital/new media, performance, and 3D/sculpture. Keep in mind that the qualities of the studio space may limit the kind of work that can be produced on-site. Selected resident(s) wishing to work in ceramics will need to use McMaster facilities for wheel throwing, sculpting, and firing; the studio does not have special ventilation to accommodate the use of toxic chemicals indoors.   

Support 

The faculty and staff who are creating this residency program will apply for funding from the College of Arts and Sciences to support the work of the final exhibition. If successful, students will be “hired” to work together and will receive a modest salary divided among them equally, along with a modest supplies budget. The grants the College is awarding range from $250 - $1,500. SVAD will apply for the largest amount and make the strongest case.  

How to Apply

All applications must be submitted electronically to Bailey Peterson, Coordinator of Community Programs, at bawatts@email.sc.edu.

Submit the following items together in one PDF: 

  1. Name & Contact information, Major and Expected Graduation Date, Area of Concentration/Medium for each artist
  2. Statement of Purpose (500 words maximum) 
    1. Artist applicants should describe the ideas they plan to explore through their artwork and medium, and how their work might respond or relate to the spring 2023 semester’s theme of “play.” All applicants should indicate what they hope to accomplish and learn if they and/or their team are awarded the Stormwater Collaborative Residency. 
  3. Name and contact information of faculty mentor/liaison 
    1. The faculty mentor should be a member of the SVAD faculty. If selected, the faculty mentor will be contacted during the review process.
  4. Work Samples
    1. Artist applicants: Submit 4 images per individual artist if this is a group application (up to 5MB each) and/or a link to your video sample (on Vimeo, You Tube, or other cloud-based application). JPEG images should be no larger than 5MB each. Each time-based work sample should be two minutes in length or less.  
    2. Art History applicants: Submit 1 sample of written work. These should be papers completed for an art history course that best demonstrates your abilities as an art historian.

A committee of SVAD faculty will select 3 qualified artists and 1 art historian based on the following criteria: 

  • Theme relevance and unique ideas  
  • Potential for personal/artistic growth 
  • Interest in collaboration 
  • Eagerness to creatively engage in the Stormwater artist community 
  • Ability to maintain project commitments 

Residency Expectations

 The selected student artists and student art historian will be expected to:  

  • Maintain camaraderie and a willingness to engage in positive critique 
  • Meet with your faculty mentor/liaison to check in, assure positive experiences and progress toward meaningful outcomes 
  • Maintain an open-door policy at the studio during Stormwater hours; be willing to meet with the public who come by and discuss your project in progress 
  • Plan and host an open studio night and reception for the exhibition in coordination with the SVAD Coordinator of Community Programs (Bailey Peterson) and Stormwater Faculty Liaison (Kathleen Robbins) 

FAQs

The selected student artists and student art historian will be announced by September 16th on the Stormwater Collaborative Residency webpage. Selected residents will also be notified of acceptance via their UofSC email address.  

To apply as a team, please submit the name/contact information, major and expected graduate date, area of concentration/medium for each artist, and required work samples for all students applying together in one PDF (4 images and/or videos for each artist applying and 1 sample of written work for the art historian applicant). All students applying should also list the name and contact information for their desired faculty mentor. Only one statement of purpose is required for team applications. 

 


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